ENGLEWOOD, Colo. --When Quentin Jammer was making the rounds in free agency, only one thing was on his mind -- winning a championship.
"Obviously I had spent so much time in San Diego, to uproot and leave and go somewhere and uproot your family, it's hard. It's a difficult thing to do," he said. "But when you're forced to, you have decisions to make. The next decision that you have to make is you have three to four more years left in you. What are you going to do with your life? I want to win a championship."
So when Denver offered him a contract, he didn't hesitate.
"Hands down, if you look across the league, what better place to go than Denver to have a chance to play for a championship?" he said.
Thursday marked the 12th-year veteran's first practice as a Bronco, and after the session his new teammates made it clear how excited they are to have him in orange and blue.
Manning said Jammer has "seen it all," and he's excited to add the physical defensive back, who he believes can cover the athletic tight ends across the league.
"He's a true tackler, so he can do a lot of different things," cornerback Champ Bailey added. "That's the one thing I like about him -- he's always been a tough corner. Being that versatile obviously helps with the transition to safety if we need him there full-time or part-time."
That transition to safety -- a position Head Coach John Fox said Jammer might see some playing time -- doesn't seem to bother him even after 11 years as a cornerback with the Chargers.
"I always considered myself a football player, not really put a label on myself as a corner or a safety," Jammer said. "This is the game of football, and I feel like I can be plugged in anywhere on the defense and play — other than the big hosses up front. Any of the skill positions in the back end I can be plugged in and play. I wanted to come in and help this football team as much as I can."
Jammer has snared 21 interceptions in his career in the regular season, adding two more in the postseason. Manning said he has no trouble recalling last year's Monday Night Football win, when Jammer picked him off and returned it for a touchdown.
Regardless of where he is on the field, Jammer wants to use the team's potent pass-rush to help create more of those turnovers now that he's a Bronco.
"I think one of the guys who made that transition, who brought it along, was Rod Woodson. Then Charles Woodson had great success with it. I think I'm that type of player, where I can come in," Jammer said. "I can pretty much cover anybody on the field. I've been doing it for 11 years. Why stop now?"
